CEFC

We are not meant to walk alone! God designed friendships in Christ to be a source of mutual encouragement, strength, and spiritual growth. Paul longed to visit the believers in Rome—not just to encourage them, but to be encouraged by their faith as well (Romans 1:11-12). This message covers the following:

✨ How to cultivate friendships that build up in faith

🙏 The power of prayer and intentional encouragement

📖 How sharing scripture, testimonies, and spiritual gifts strengthens relationships

💬 How to receive spiritual encouragement from others.

Who in your life encourages you? How can you be an encourager to someone this week? Watch, be inspired, and take action!

#ChristianFriendship #Encouragement #FaithInCommunity #SpiritualGrowth #IronSharpensIron #Romans1

Friendships can become God’s force to shape and sharpen our spiritual lives.  

This message unpacks Proverbs 27:17 and Galatians 6:1-2, revealing how to approach others with gentle correction when they're caught in one of life's traps. Learn the delicate balance between necessary friction and damaging force in relationships, and see how Jesus modeled this perfectly with His disciples. 

Join us as we explore how our friendships, when rooted in truth and love, can become powerful tools for personal and spiritual growth. Embrace the challenge to give and receive the contact that helps us become sharper, more Christlike versions of ourselves. Visit our website at cefc.church.

Friendship That Sacrifices (1 Samuel 18:1-4; Philippians 2:5-8) | CEFC 2-2-25

In a world of quick likes, endless scrolling, and shallow connections, true friendship is becoming increasingly rare. But real friendship—the kind that changes lives—is costly. It requires sacrifice, vulnerability, and deep commitment.

📖 In 1 Samuel 18, Jonathan gives up his royal robe and armor for David—a powerful act of selfless love. But this story points to something even greater…

✨ Jesus, the true Son of the King, gave up far more than a robe—He gave up heaven’s glory to make us His friends (Philippians 2:5-8).

💡 What does this mean for you?

How can you be a Jonathan to someone in your life?

What does it look like to love with a sacrificial friendship?

And most importantly—how does Jesus’ ultimate friendship transform the way we love others?

🔗 Stick around to discover how true friendship is marked by sacrifice—first in Christ, then in how we love others.

Are you the type of friend who encourages and strengthens others even when it puts you in a potentially difficult situation? In 1 Samuel 23:15-18, Jonathan, son of King Saul, secretly meets with David, Saul's successor, to encourage him spiritually and affirm his future kingship. Although David was being relentlessly threatened by King Saul, Jonathan put himself at risk as he sought to remind David of the promises of God. Having counted the cost, Jonathan remained a good friend to David and faithful to the Lord despite potential consequences from his own father, King Saul.

Are you struggling with Friendship? Are you lonely and desiring a friend? Are the friendships you already have difficult and sometimes painful or unfulfilling? As we begin our new series “Friendship by Divine Design,” we are going to explore how Christ has modeled friendship for us and through a foundational friendship with Him, we’ll be able to share his love with others. Jesus is more than just a YouTube how to video or a self help book. Let’s unpack how:

Jesus tells us how to build friendships

He shows us how to build friendships 

Then he sends us out to love our friends well 

If you’re feeling in need of a friend, watch and listen in to how Jesus offers friendship to you so you can offer it to others.

How will you finish your life? Will it be full of meaning, purpose, and faith—or will it slip away like sand in an hourglass?

Starting well is important, but finishing well is critical. How can we finish well? How can we finish faithfully? Acts 28 describes final years of the apostle Paul’s ministry when his life is being “poured out like a drink offering”. It is striking and encouraging to see Paul finishing his life faithfully. What are the keys to finishing faithfully?

1. Hope in Christ; 2. Welcome All; 3. Proclaim the Kingdom of God and Teach Jesus.

#FinishingFaithfully #FinishingWell #ChristAlone #HopeinChrist #WelcomeAll #TeachJesus

This passage and this message inspire us follow Paul’s example and finish life with a flourish of gladness, rejoicing, welcoming, and teaching!

Don’t settle for a life wasted—pour out your life for what truly matters.

Watch now and discover how to live and finish well. Join us at cefc.church.

Life often feels like a series of storms, but what happens when the storm is followed by the strike of a snake? In Acts 28, Paul survives a shipwreck only to face a venomous viper on the island of Malta. His response shows us how to trust God when it seems like the struggles and hardships in life keep coming.

Through this message, discover five powerful lessons:

1. Trust in Christ's ability to save—He’s delivered before, and He will deliver again

2. Place your hope in eternity, where ultimate victory is assured.

3. Be sad but not defeated—express pain while clinging to Christ.

4. Shake off the attacks of the enemy with faith and resilience.

5. Let your faithfulness in suffering be a witness to others.

Paul’s unwavering trust in God leads to healing and a powerful witness to the people of Malta. Let this story inspire you to face life’s storms and snakes with faith, hope, and boldness in Christ! Join us at cefc.church.

Christmas celebrations don’t always live up to our expectations and the season seems to come and go so quickly. But here’s the good news, if we look behind all our yearly festivities to the reason we celebrate Christmas we find a message that never disappoints and a person that always exceeds the expectations of those who believe in him. John tells us why in the prologue to his Gospel about Jesus - John 1:1-18. Let’s explore it together.

Christmas may be that time of year when peace is the hardest gift to find. And yet, peace is the gift each of us want and need. Why is peace so elusive? Where can we find peace? Jesus is the Prince of Peace (as foretold in Isaiah 9:6) who offers us the gift of peace in himself. This Christmas we are finding peace in Jesus. Join us at cefc.church.

#Christmas #Peace #FindingPeace #Jesus #GiftofPeace3 #PrinceofPeace #sermon

When the storms of life come blowing in to our lives, we may feel that God has either abandoned us or is torturing us. But what if God is using the storm to bring us to a place of where we willing choose to throw out of our lives those things that have been weighing us down spiritually? What if the storm is God’s prompting to cast out of our lives the loves and anxieties that have been keeping us from following Christ? Acts 27 gives us a great metaphor for understanding the storms of life and teaches us to respond to storms in a way that leads to abundant life.